paulpetersonlive.com

    Building STRENGTH in every arena of life!

, ,

By

paulpeterson

·

Endure when you’re underwhelmed

WARNING: this is a deep, private look into my heart. This is part of the journey… traveling out loud. Living by faith has two sides: overwhelming and underwhelming. It is overwhelming when God pops out of “nowhere” and surprises you with a gift, a friendship, a new insight into Scripture, etc. You know He is…

WARNING: this is a deep, private look into my heart. This is part of the journey… traveling out loud.

Living by faith has two sides: overwhelming and underwhelming.

It is overwhelming when God pops out of “nowhere” and surprises you with a gift, a friendship, a new insight into Scripture, etc. You know He is there and His blessings lift you up and sustain you.

On the other hand, it can be underwhelming when you are wondering where God is.

It is underwhelming when you feel like you are totally doing what He has called you to do and yet you’re still struggling (see Psalm 73 for a Biblical example of this). The struggles can range from emotional to financial; from spiritual to relational. The bottom line is while your doing what you’ve been called to do the struggle is underway and it is underwhelming. You begin to think things like, “It’d be easier doing something else.”

Yea, this is kind of an ugly article, but it’s where we’ve all been and where I’ve cruised in and out of too.

Hey, today I found a couple of verses that have refined my focus and may add value to you when you feel underwhelmed…

Let me give you some context – St. Paul is in prison because of his choice to talk about Jesus in a culture that did not tolerate this message. His choice to TOTALLY obey God landed him in an underwhelming scenario… “I obeyed God and now I’m in prison.”

He’s writing a letter to his young friend/protege, Timothy…

“Endure suffering along with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. Soldiers don’t get tied up in the affairs of civilian life, for then they cannot please the officer who enlisted them. And athletes cannot win the prize unless they follow the rules. And hardworking farmers should be the first to enjoy the fruit of their labor.” (2 Timothy 2:3-6 NLT)

It occurs to me that there are three lessons for underwhelmed people here:

  • Stay focused! Endure suffering and don’t get tied up with other things!
  • Obey the rules! Deviating from God’s plan will keep you underwhelmed in the long run! Just do what He has called you to and keep doing it with rugged determination.
  • Enjoy the results! For the follower of Christ who stays focused and and follows the Leader (Jesus) with dogged determination THERE WILL BE RESULTS! Will you… will I hang in there long enough to see the results we’ve been called to achieve?

And then Paul “hits it out of the park” with these words that I’ve read a hundred times but never been impacted like I was today…

“I am willing to endure anything if it will bring salvation and eternal glory in Christ Jesus to those God has chosen.”

Bottom line… though at points in this journey I have felt underwhelmed, I am committed to doing whatever it takes to connect disconnected people to God.

How about you? What has God called you to do? Are you doing it? Are you feeling underwhelmed while you’re doing it?

If you’re not doing it… get to it!

If you’re doing it and feeling underwhelmed remember:

  • Stay focused! Don’t get distracted! Keep your eyes on your Leader (Jesus)
  • Obey the rules! Don’t call audibles for Jesus! Hear His voice through prayer and the Bible and follow His plan!
  • Enjoy the results! They will come for those who endure!

Tags:

Responses to “Endure when you’re underwhelmed”

  1. MirroredGrace

    “will I hang in there long enough to see the results we’ve been called to achieve? ”

    YEAH BABY!! You know I’m in it for the long haul!

    Yay Jesus!

    Reply
  2. intensesimplicity

    I have a little book I keep in my MOPS bag called “The Carrot Seed.” I pull it out several times a year and reread it. It goes like this…
    A little boy planted a carrot seed.
    His mother said, “I’m afraid it won’t come up.”
    His father said, “I’m afraid it won’t come up.”
    And his big brother said, “It won’t come up.”
    Every day the little boy pulled the weeds around the seed and
    sprinkled the ground with water.
    But nothing came up.
    And nothing came up.
    Everyone kept saying it wouldn’t come up.
    But he still pulled up the weeds around it every day and sprinkled the ground with water.
    And then, one day,
    a carrot came up
    just as the little boy had known it would.

    This story reminds of the scripture that says,
    “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Gal 6:9

    Another thought…It’s amazing how we understand the scriptures differently when we’re in the midst of a trial. You are growing!

    Reply
  3. darlene

    I’ve been a bit underwhelmed myself. I wanted to go back to “fishing” like Peter. I blogged about it today, then popped over to your site and chuckled. Hang in there friend. You too are to fish on land.

    Reply
  4. muckdogs

    Keep evangelizing Pastor Paul. I admire your courage to step out of the boat. Peter walked on water and so will you.
    It is the devil trying to discourage you. Keep going. Looking forward to hearing about the launch next week.
    God bless
    Lynda

    Reply
  5. pastormike33

    Paul,

    I love the expression “don’t call audibles for Jesus”. I just got done reading “Ministry Mutiny” by Greg Stier and he has a chapter dedicated to hearing the whisper of God (taken from Elijah’s encounter in the cave, the still small voice passage).

    Good overwhelmed/underwhelmed word choice. Very good. So what message series are you launching? Sounds like God is setting you up to address the issues of “building faith in the dark or in the still of the night” The Psalmist has a ton of “I rise in the night watches” passages that really talk about the behind the scenes, nobody knows but Jesus, kind of faith experience. Not the up front, praise band, lift your hands kind of spine tingling.

    Mike

    PS — just signed up for WordPress myself!

    Reply
  6. bethbeale

    Count it all for joy my friend, I think God IS speaking: in the diapers, the dishes, the new table, the stillness.
    One of my difficulties is that I do not like to sit still. Move me, show me, put me to work and I am good. Put me in a place of stillness and I panic. I sometimes forget to cherish the moment.
    An old man once told me:
    “I wake up and breath in, then after I have breathed out I knew it would be a good day!”
    I cant wait to hear what comes from this time.

    Reply

Leave a comment